Jason ran a hand through his hair,avoiding his own horns,and it removed the green dye all the way. His hair actually looked nice with the natural coloring. "Hm...I'm not trusting him,not with one scale of my body,but I'll listen." He glanced at Puck. "But I won't alone,I can fight if attacked but not to much with this shattered body alone." He spoke mostly to Puck,in a way asking if he'd come.

There was no way that Puck would leave Jason's side, even in the Iron Realm. He nodded at Jason. "ENOUGH. TIME IS PRESSING. WE DO NOT HAVE TIME TO ARGUE. JASON, WILL YOU ACCEPT MY HELP OR NOT?"

Jason gave him a thankful smile and gently put a hand to his shoulder as he looked back at Ironhorse. "Fine. One hint that this isn't safe,I'm dragging you to the dragon realm and letting you drop from the sky into the DeathlyCaverns with the native Toxicwings." He said,flexing his stinger and showing the lava in the back of his throat once before letting the stinger retreat and swallowed the lava with the faintest wince.

Ironhorse bobbed his head. "OF COURSE, JASON. THE SCEPTER OF THE SEASONS HAS BEEN TAKEN INTO THE MORTAL REALM. IT IS BEING HELD IN A PLACE CALLED SILICON VALLEY."


"Silicon Valley? Thats in California."


"YES."


"Why there?"


"SILICON VALLEY WAS THE BIRTHPLACE OF LORD MACHINA," Ironhorse said gravely. "MANY OF HIS LIEUTENANTS, LIKE VIRUS AND GLITCH, ALSO HAIL FROM THAT AREA. IT IS A REGION OF IRON FEY, ONE THAT THE OLDBLOODS--" he shot a glance at Puck "--AVOID COMPLETELY. IT IS THE IDEAL PLACE TO HIDE THE SCEPTER."

Jason facepalmed and sucked in a sharp breath. "Dang it...."home" here I come,Linda better not be there." He muttered,shoulders slumping slightly at the thought of getting seen by his foster mom of the time. If he was caught they'd take him back and shove him into another home,and if that place didn't take him in permanently he'd be done for and sent to Juvenile camp. "Is there a way that would be safe to go through to avoid any other iron fey?" He said other because he wasn't about to make Ironhorse mad. Or...wait....he sorta seemed mad all the time,but whatever. Still,mad-der.

"NO, UNFORTUNATELY NOT."

"Finally." Grimalkin stood and stretched, bottlebrush tail curling over his back. "You make decisions as slowly as you answer Summonings, dragon. I do hope this will not become a habit."


"Wait. Youre coming, too? Why?"


"I am bored." Grimalkin waved his tail languidly. "And you are always entertaining...except when I am waiting for you to arrive, of course. Besides, the lieutenant and I have business, as well."

Jason pulled at his hair a bit,stressed now that this would be a risk to Puck if he wasn't all sweet and dandy with iron as Ash wasn't. "I think faster during combat." He muttered,shaking his head a bit,swinging those creamy white tips. His hair looked as if you got all of the strands and dunked the rich brown in bleach. It really brought out the details that puncuat his royal features,no wonder he dyed it jocky green.

Puck couldn't help but stare at Jason a little. He had admitted his feelings for Jason earlier, but he hadn't really said anything about it.
Grim sniffed and half slitted his eyes. "And you will need my guidance, if you want to get the scepter as quickly as possible. I believe the closest trod to Silicon Valley is through the Briars."


Pucks eyebrows shot up. "The Briars? Youre risking an awful lot, cat. Why dont we try a trod a little less, oh I dont know...lethal? If we double back, we can use the trod through the Frost Meadows. That will bring us close to San Francisco, and we can easily hitch a ride from there."


Grimalkin shook his head. "If we want to reach Silicon Valley, we must go through the thorns. Do not worry, I will not get you lost. The trod past the Frost Meadows has become inaccessible. It sits too close to Tir Na Nog."


"Still dont see the problem, cat."


Ironhorse snorted. "THE FROST MEADOWS HAVE BECOME A BATTLEFIELD, ROBIN GOODFELLOW," he said. "WINTER HAS ALREADY CUT A SWATH OF DESTRUCTION THROUGH THE WYLDWOOD, AND THEY ARE ADVANCING ON SUMMER AS WE SPEAK. THERE IS A HUGE ARMY OF UNSEELIE BETWEEN US AND THAT TROD. THE CAITH SITH IS RIGHT--WE CANNOT TURN BACK."


"Of course I am," Grimalkin agreed. "We go through the Briars."

Jason glanced to him and noticed his staring,faint pink bubbling into his freckles and underwings until he looked away and pounded it out with dark purple. 'dang it...not again,I'm not doing that again.But...he's not like Ash...shut it head,don't even think about him,think about what's ahead...like going back to the recent placement you'v got,think about the risks of that. Yeah,the pain and fright. Yeah,not Pucks rich green eyes...or smile...or...his...personality...dang it!' He stamped his own tail as he listened to the conversation.

Ironhorse glared at Puck balefully, tossed his head, and strode after the quickly vanishing Grimalkin. The Iron faery left a faint path of destruction in his wake; branches curled away from him, plants withered and grass shriveled under his feet, leaving burned-out hoofprints on the trail. Shaking his head, Puck muttered something very rude under his breath and followed, leading them deeper into the wyldwood.